Wake County nuclear plant shut down due to cracks, corrosion

Duke Energy Progress has shut down the Shearon Harris Nuclear Generating Station, near Jordan Lake in southern Wake County, after an inspection revealed early signs of corrosion and cracking in the reactor vessel, which contains the plant's nuclear fuel.

The plant, which began operations in 1987, is located in New Hill, about 20 miles southwest of Raleigh.

Officials said the quarter inch crack was not all the way through the reactor vessel wall and there is no indication any radioactive material escaped.

"Initial evaluation indicates that the flaw is not through wall and there is no evidence of leakage based on inspections performed on the top of the reactor vessel head during the spring 2012 refueling outage. Operators are shutting down the unit to make the necessary repairs. There is no impact to the health and safety of employees or the public," read a report on the incident on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission website.